‘Big Brother: All-Stars' Needs Vanessa, Because The Drama She Stirred Up & Her Amazing Game Play Are Unparalleled

On Wednesday night we will know once and for all who will win Big Brother 17 and walk away with the $500,000 grand prize. But until then, I am going to focus on all of the things that I can still speculate about — and that includes basically nothing about the rest of this season of Big Brother, because with only one episode left, there isn’t much to theorize about. This means, all of my imaginative energy these days is going into thinking about Season 18, and when in the world CBS is going to do another round of Big Brother: All-Stars. Lucky for me (and for Big Brother fans everywhere) the BB producers spoke exclusively with The Hollywood Reporterabout it — and they are already casting their vote for who should come back for Big Brother: All-Stars.

From the interview:

Out of this season's cast, who has a shot at returning for an "all-stars" season?

[Executive producer Rich] Meehan: Even "all-stars" — and when we bring people back, it's always a mix of people — from a game perspective, Vanessa has obviously played a great game. From a likability perspective, James and John are really well-liked and fun characters.

While Meehan is correct in saying James and John are more well-liked, I think its his mention of Vanessa that's the most compelling. As much as I haven’t been a Vanessa fan at all this season, there’s no doubt that she has stirred up a lot of drama, intrigue, and conversation — all of which points to the fact that she really should be the one to come back to the Big Brother house for all-stars, if it happens again.

I mean, really, what else could the production team want from a player? Whether or not you like Vanessa on this season of Big Brother, you have to admit she’s sparked a lot of drama. She’s stirred the pot, confronted other players, and even bullied some of her fellow contestants into some pretty tight corners. Also: Who else has cried as much as Vanessa has this season? (Maybe Shelli, but considering she was out halfway through, I think Vanessa has probably racked up way more cry time.)

And then there’s the fact that she was behind pretty much every argument in the house. She kind orchestrated most of them, bringing houseguests together to admit what they had or had not said to her or to each other, and then berating them for betraying her the minute they came clean. Talk about a character worth bringing back for a second round of Big Brother competition!

Also, most simply, Vanessa is one hell of a player — maybe one of the best in Big Brother history. She was behind pretty much every eviction that happened this season, whether directly or indirectly. If she was in control, she was the one delivering the ax blow — and even when someone else was in charge, she always seemed to find a way to get that person to listen to her and her amazing game strategy. It was incredibly impressive.

And then there is the undeniable fact that Vanessa is a really polarizing player. What does that mean for a reality television show? It means that she gets everyone talking and — more importantly — she gets everyone watching. Whether or not fans are Team Vanessa is not the point. She stirs up enough feelings from the viewers — love, hate, respect — to keep them tuning in and coming back for more.

Something tells me that players who cause drama, play the game well, and get the viewers coming back for more are exactly the kind of houseguests that the producers are excited to bring back for the next round of all-stars. Now let’s all just keep our fingers crossed that Season 18 is when they make that all-stars season happen.

For more on this season of Big Brother, check out Bustle's podcast The Diary Room.